1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a system and method that prevents theft of a notebook computer. More particularly, the present invention relates to a system and method that prevents theft of intellectual property stored on a notebook computer based upon pre-resuming activities.
2. Description of the Related Art
Portable information handling devices, such as notebook computers, are increasingly popular due to their portability and increased computer power when compared to previous generation devices. These portable information handling devices are often used by mobile professionals to conduct work away from the office environment. In addition, the increasing availability of wired and wireless networks often allows the user to connect to a network, such as the Internet or an organizations internal network, to access resources and data files.
A challenge of these devices, however, is that they are often a target for thieves due to their small size and relative high value when compared with their size. While technologies are available to help secure these portable information handling devices while working remotely, such as security cables that lock the device to a table or other relatively fixed location, these security technologies can be overcome. For example, in the case of a security cable, a thief with a bolt cutter can simply cut the security cable and walk away with the portable information handling device.
For the owner of the portable information handling system, the theft of the physical equipment is often overshadowed by the theft of the intellectual property stored on the portable information handling system. The fact that the owner of the portable information handling system does not know the ultimate motivations of the thief exacerbates the theft of the intellectual property stored on the device. For example, if the portable information handling system was being used by an engineer to design a valuable new product, or by a banker that has sensitive and confidential financial records for the bank's customers, having the engineering designs or customer financial records fall into the wrong hands could be devastating to the entire organization and might force the organization to take drastic and expensive measures to address the compromised intellectual property. For example, in the case of the banker, notices would likely have to be sent to the customers whose financial data was stolen and the bank may have to pay for losses incurred by its customers if the thief uses the stolen data to steal money from the customers using the stolen financial data.
Oftentimes, however, the thief is simply interested in the portable hardware itself and does not intend to use the intellectual property stored on the device. The thief's motivations, however, are typically unknown, and the owner of the portable information handling system often needs to assume the worst-case scenario in order to protect the organization from harm that the theft of the intellectual property could cause to the organization.
Currently, theft deterrence solutions rely on a power source in order to protect the portable hardware. For example, a battery is used to provide power to an audible alarm. Once the power source is removed, typically by removing the portable information handling system's battery, the theft deterrence of current solutions is rendered ineffective. Therefore, a system and method is needed to use pre-resuming activities in order to identify a possible theft and take appropriate actions.